Scandic Hotels, the largest hotel company in the Nordic countries, has signed an agreement with property owner Exilion to operate a new hotel in the building that houses the Helsinki Central Railway Station. With close to 500 rooms, the hotel will be one of the largest in Scandic’s portfolio and a landmark in the city.

Helsinki’s Central Railway Station, which was built between 1909 and 1919, is one of the city’s most well known buildings and has a rich history. It was designed by renowned architect Eliel Saarinen who also designed the National Museum in Helsinki. With more than 240,000 travelers passing through the station daily, the station is, along with Stockholm’s Central Station, the largest in the Nordic countries.

The new hotel, which will be located next to the Ateneum Art Museum and the Finnish National Theater, is planned to open in 2020. At this time, the part of the property that now houses the offices of the state-owned railway company VR Group, will open with 483 rooms, conference facilities for up to 900 people and a stunning restaurant that accommodates 420 people. The project is being developed in cooperation with the Finland’s National Board of Antiquities and the City of Helsinki to ensure that the new hotel fits into the surrounding city environment.

– This will be a unique development and we are excited to open a hotel in such a historic building. We look forward to creating a spectacular hotel for Helsinki’s locals and visitors, says Frank Fiskers, President & CEO of Scandic.

– We’ve been looking for a partner to operate a hotel in this unique building for some time. Scandic has a successful track record of operating large, prestigious, centrally-located hotels and we’re very happy to have entered this agreement that will take us to the next step in the building’s history, says Ari Talja, President of Exilion.

Scandic currently has 28 hotels in Finland including five Scandic hotels and two Hilton hotels in Helsinki. The Finnish hotel market and economy are expected to show positive growth. In addition, Helsinki is the heart of the business community in Finland and the Helsinki region is home to 25% of Finland’s population.